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XPN2 - Jingle Jams

24/7 Musical discovery. A unique mix of emerging and heritage blues, rock, world, folk, and alt-country artists.
Jingle Jams. An eclectic assortment of holiday tunes, from the new and quirky to the classic.

July 31, 2013 - The first place people heard the music of Rhye was in a series of sensual videos posted to the web with little or no accompanying information. The point for the duo of Mike Milosh and Robin Hannibal, who made the album Woman was for people to focus on the music, not the personality of the singer.

At A Loss For Words: Steve Martin Asks Edie Brickell To Write Lyrics For Their Collaboration

August 27, 2013 - Steve Martin is a true renaissance man. Add to his accomplishments as an actor, writer of everything from movie scripts to novels, art collector and very funny man; award-winning banjo player. His easy lilting melodies on the banjo have met Edie Brickell’s (of New Bohemian’s fame) lyrics on the new album Love Has Come For You.

August 30, 2013 - Nomad is an appropriate title for guitarist Bombino’s new album. Certainly the Tuareg people are a nomadic people but the guitarist has been forced to move because of politics twice during his life.

July 19, 2013 - In 2004, Brazilian singer Vinicius Cantuária visited us at The Cafe, he was in the midst of a string of gorgeous well-praised albums that began with Sol Na Cara in 1996. We revisit this session, recorded around the release of Horse and Fish, as part of our

Sense Of Place: Rio - "Rio Is A Small Music Community..There Is a Kind Of Interaction That Makes The Music Unique Here." ~ Kassin

July 19, 2013 - Kassin was the perfect person to talk with us about the contemporary music scene in Rio during our Sense of Place visit. Not only is he an artist - his latest album Sonhando Devager translates to “Dream Slowly” – but he is an in-demand producer working out of his own studio with people like Marisa Monte and Arto Lindsay.

July 17 - Forro in the Dark gets its name from the Forro, a type of dance and music that's been popular in northeastern Brazil for more than 100 years. The style's traditional incarnation involves a three-piece band with a triangle, an accordion and a bass-like drum called a zabumba.

July 17, 2013 - The music of Seu Jorge occupies a singular place in today's Brazil. His songs are hailed as a return to the traditional songwriting of Tom Jobim and Caetano Veloso. But his style, and his background, lead many to call Jorge a hero of life on Rio's streets.

"Talking About All The Styles of Samba Is Like Talking About All The Styles of Rock!"

July 16, 2013 - Our guest today Alex Shaw directs the Philadelphia band Alo Brasil. The group manages to synthesize all the various types of samba for American audiences. They are very busy around carnival time in February.

July 16, 2013 - The first stop on our World Cafe Sense of Place trip to Brazil was in Pelourinho, the old part of city of Salvador on the country’s northeast coast. Hoping to get a sense of the roots of the samba, the backbone of Brazilian music, we captured a performance there from one of the most thrilling groups ever on the Cafe.

The Screaming Eagle of Soul, Charles Bradley, Makes The Most of His Late In Life Shot

Soul man Charles Bradley always knew he could sing. His fellow members of The Job Corps told him, everybody throughout his life let him know. He just never got the shot, shuttling from one odd job to another.

July 9, 2013 - Listening to Broncho’s debut album Can’t Get Past The Lips you are reminded as much of The Ramones as you are of Weezer. This is a fun aggressive pop band that straddles the line between punk and pop.

July 5, 2013 - Portugal. The Man are a shape-shifting indie-rock band originally from Wasilla, Alaska. Led by vocalist John Gourley, the band went the indie route entirely until they were signed by Atlantic records before their last album.

July 4, 2013 - Certainly fans of current Allman Brothers Band guitarist Derek Trucks might put up an argument, but there is ample evidence on the new box set Skydog: The Duane Allman Retrospective to support believers in the talent of the guitarist who died at the age of 24 in 1971.